Krishna!

Chapter 15 - The Dungeons

At the amphitheatre,

Kanika and Shree sat beside Prince Rukmi and were watching the sports events lined up for the day. Archery and the Long-Distance Running took place in great splendour. Kamsa had never shown so much excitement. With every winning attack, he jumped and clapped in excitement, a form that had never been seen by the citizens. By now everyone has just one thought "Vinaasha Kaale Vipareeta Buddhi".

Shree suddenly felt uncomfortable, with the growing nearness towards the wrestling competition. Krishna had not yet arrived and there was no sign of Sankarshana and Shyam either. She had now decided that it was time to look for them and what better way to start by meeting her own would-be in-laws.

"Maharaj, I am not too comfortable watching a wrestling match. May I now take the opportunity to visit your honoured sister and brother-in-law? If you permit me, I would like to take my friend Kanika along and stay there till the match is over .", Shree spoke you Kamsa, in a soft voice, hands folded, face down.

"Of course, Rukmini! Take your friend along. I shall arrange some soldiers for your comfortable journey to the prison, which is a few miles away from here", said Kamsa, and sent an order to his soldiers. And quietly, Shree and Kanika, boarded the chariot, which sped towards the dark Dungeons of Mathura. With every minute passing by, Shree kept worrying, both for her friends and her lord. She just prayed that everything would go fine.

The chariot screeched and halted before a small fortress, as dark as serpents. Shree and Kanika felt a little worried about how the place would be. As they climbed down the chariot and started walking into the dungeons, the eerie sent shivers down their spine. The soldier led them into an unending passage, filled with dirt and cobwebs. The soldier stopped near a large metal door. It had the designs of two large snakes throughout it. It looked quite frightening in the dark. There was very little room for sunlight. It had a huge metal lock in front. The soldier took out its key and pushed the door open. With the metal door's clanking, Shree heard a voice from inside.

"Oh! So, you finally came here. I bet you could not bear to make me see you die! And you have not allowed me to see my child. Why are you here?", said the voice, scornfully. Shree gasped. She realised it was Devaki. Her would be mother-in-law.

"Devaki, your brother cannot do anything to us today. He will meet his end. Our Krishna will come.", said another voice. It was her would-be father-in-law Vasudeva.

"Vasudeva, Kamsa could not have come here just to listen to you both. I think it is someone else", said a third voice, a little older one. Her would-be grandfather-in-law Ugrasena, spoke, with a heaviness in voice.

Shree could not believe her ears. She was standing in front of the very people she wanted to meet. Her would-be family. She took a deep breath and walked in.

"Absolutely right! I am not here to listen to you. I just wanted to meet you all and take your blessings", she spoke softly as she entered the large room. She saw her would-be parents-in-law in one lock up and her grandfather-in-law in another

Devaki's moist and rage filled eyes immediately softened hearing a girl's voice. She looked up in hope, for a moment assuming that Yashoda's daughter was alive and had grown up. So were Vasudeva and Ugrasena, shocked. And they saw Shree. Neither of them were able to take their eyes off her. As beautiful as she looked, she had a divine aura around her. She looked so lustrous.

Shree was pained to see the conditions of all the three people. The old King Ugrasena, still in his royal clothes, had all his hair white, a wrinkled face and a tired body. His hands kept shivering, as he looked at her with hope in his eyes. Vasudeva's face too looked tired, hair greying. A tall man of about six feet, he looked astoundingly handsome. No wonder, she had heard that Krishna got his attractive features from his father. His body was covered in a jute Angavastra, grey in colour and a Dhoti of the same colour. His face had a full-grown beard, almost touching his chest. His curly hair also fell loosely on his shoulders. His eyes were kind, despite all the pain he had endured. Shree felt blessed seeing him. But she was almost reduced to tears when she saw Devaki. Although not too old physically, she was forced to become old and wise with the trauma she had been through. Her long-dishevelled hair, greying slowly, had seen the salty tears that streaked her face all these years. The mother who mourned the death of her seven children, the princess who never saw happiness after she got wedded to Vasudeva, the dear sister she had longed to be of Rohini, Vasudeva's first wife, the very blessed woman who got to give birth to Narayana himself. Shree was overwhelmed to see her.